#DailyDevotion The LORD’s Steadfast Love & Truth Protect Us
Psalm 40 9I tell the news of righteousness in the great congregation, and I don’t shut my mouth – O LORD, You know it. 10I don’t keep Your righteousness a secret in my heart; I tell how faithful You are and how You save. I have not hid from the great congregation how kind and true You are. 11You, O LORD, don’t hold back Your kindness from me. May Your kindness and Your truth always protect me;
Following verse three where the LORD opens in David’s mouth a new song, David here sings of the LORD’s character and what He has done. The LORD’s righteousness is something he tells about in the great congregation, that is when the Israelites come to the tabernacle to worship. He does not keep his mouth shut. How are we doing in telling of the LORD’s righteousness? What would that consist of for you and me? It would be how the LORD does not tolerate wickedness and evil, but out of His great love for us, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins. Jesus took our guilt and shame upon Himself on the cross. He promises God will credit us with His righteousness if we put our trust in Him.
David saw the kindness of the LORD in Him defeating Israel’s enemies and giving them the enemies’ lands. He saw how faithful the LORD was in keeping His promises even when Israel failed to keep their promises. We see how kind the LORD is in Jesus Christ, His delivering us from sin, death and the power of the devil. He promises to give us the world when He comes again in judgment. It is the kindness of the LORD that protects us and His truth that preserves us in the true faith. Jesus says in John 10, “27My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me, 28and I give them everlasting life. They will never be lost, and no one will tear them out of My hand. 29My Father, Who gave them to Me, is greater than all others, and no one can tear them out of My Father’s hand. 30I and the Father are one.”
12for evils surround me until they can’t be counted. My sins have caught up with me until I can’t see; they are more than the hairs on my head. I have lost my courage. 13Hurry, O LORD, to rescue me! O LORD, come quickly to help me!
If only we knew how many flaming arrows of the devil were pointing at us, we would never cease praying. Evil surrounds us everywhere. Even our sins have caught us with us and we cannot see clearly. When we do recognize our sinfulness we lose our courage and boldness. We cannot even recognize when we sin at times so our sins are more than the hairs on our head. It only takes one to enter into judgment with the LORD. We, like David, cry out to our LORD Jesus Christ to rescue us and to quickly help us. Before we have finished, Jesus has already taken care of our sins on the cross. He has sent His messengers, His pastors, with the words of absolution on their lips, to declare us free from sin, not guilty, to remove our guilt and shame with the words of Jesus, “I forgive you your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. He sends them the tokens of the atonement sacrifice, His body and His blood, shed for the forgiveness of our sins so we may partake of them and participate through them Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, receiving His atonement, the mortification of our sinful bodies, and His eternal life. Such things we declare in the midst of the great congregation.
Heavenly Father, may You always open our lips that we may tell of your righteousness and kindness in the Church, that You have given us through You Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Fulfill Your promise in Christ to guard and protect our faith in evermore through the means of grace You have bestowed upon us in Christ Jesus. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.